Officials squash rumors of unsafe water

Some in south Loveland lost service early Friday, but treatment plant is working properly, utility says

By Jessica Maher Reporter-Herald Staff Writer

Posted:
09/14/2013 12:17:36 AM MDT

Some south Loveland water customers lost their service early Friday morning, but rumors of contaminated water or widespread utility shutoffs are unfounded, according to Loveland Water and Power spokeswoman Gretchen Stanford.

On Friday evening, Water and Power crews were still trying to determine the cause of water outages and reduced pressure to customers south of First Street between Taft Avenue and South Cleveland Avenue, including the Derby Hill area. Stanford said it was unclear how many customers were affected, but crews are investigating water lines in the area.

Residents in the southern portion of the city had also reported low water pressure, and water storage tanks were refilled at full speed to alleviate the problem.

"The water tanks have plenty of water and no shortages are anticipated at this time," Stanford said.

Still, there was a rush on bottled water throughout the city as concerns grew. At the King Soopers on Eagle Drive, the only grocery store available to south Loveland residents before Wilson Avenue reopened, the supply of bottled water had been sold out before noon on Friday. Duffield Avenue resident Karla Mahan was glad she bought water Thursday night.

"We're at the highest point in Loveland but we haven't had water since 6 a.m.," Mahan said while shopping for essentials at King Soopers.

Because of the flooding, Stanford said 24-hour testing of the city's water has been activated.

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"The water is still meeting all state and federal drinking water standards," Stanford said.

The water treatment plant at Green Glade Reservoir, which lies above the flooded area, is operating on backup power provided by diesel-fueled generators but is in no jeopardy of interrupting service, according to a press release from city of Loveland spokesman Tom Hacker.

A break of a 20-inch water line crossing the Big Thompson River in west Loveland had been anticipated, with service rerouted to ensure continuous delivery.

The city's wastewater treatment plant, according to Hacker, processed 20 million gallons between Thursday and mid-Friday. That's more than three times the system's usual capacity, but Hacker said its performance was sufficient throughout the period.

There have been few power outages from the flooding, with limited outages in the city near St. Louis Avenue and Colorado 402.

"A lot of people are under the assumption that we're turning off utilities and that is not the case," Stanford said.